"Professor Wilson, plagiarism checks typically apply only to theses. Martin’s doctoral dissertation passed all standard reviews.""What we're discussing here are his published academic papers—particularly those he authored while abroad.""And in academia, this isn’t uncommon. Modern science, after all, is built upon the shoulders of giants," Lincoln Myers replied, defending his position."Fair enough," Joseph said, smiling again—but to Myers, there was something unsettling about that smile."So, Director Myers, your conclusion is that Professor Martin’s work constitutes excessive citation, but nothing more?" Geoffrey Harris asked, turning to him."Correct. After thorough review with Deputy Director Malcolm Gray, we found no fundamental violations in Professor Martin’s papers," Myers affirmed."Alright, what about your findings, old Sanchez?" Geoffrey Harris looked toward Leonard Sanchez."My side of the review was similar to Director Myers'. I didn’t go as in-depth, but I didn’t

Everyone held their breath, waiting patiently. But the progress bar stalled stubbornly at 99%, frozen in place."Ahem, please bear with me a moment. It's an official site, after all—just a bit... antique," Geoffrey Harris said with slight embarrassment.“No worries. If it loaded too fast, we’d start doubting its authenticity,” Joseph replied with a faint smile.But just as Joseph finished speaking, the website crashed entirely.Geoffrey Harris looked mortified, forced to reload the page. This time, however, the process went surprisingly smoothly.In mere moments, the site redirected to the search results page, and to everyone's astonishment, it returned an overwhelming number of results under Joseph’s name.The sheer volume left the room in stunned silence. Dozens, perhaps hundreds of academic papers under the name “Joseph”—an almost absurd quantity.At the top of the search page was Joseph’s personal profile. But the photo attached was of a much younger Joseph, complete with a little

That afternoon, both Joseph and Alice had only one class at two o’clock and were done before four.After class, Joseph went straight to the parking lot to wait for Alice. Since he had dinner plans with the investigation team, he didn’t stay behind to answer the students’ questions.When he arrived, Alice hadn’t come down yet, so he got into the car to wait.A few minutes later, Alice arrived—along with Mason Alvarez, who got in with her and sat in the back seat."Let’s go home, Joseph!" Alice chirped sweetly."Professor Alvarez, do you need a ride back to your place?" Joseph asked."My place? No way—we’re going to your place," Mason said cheerfully. "It’s the weekend tomorrow, and I’m sleeping over with your little sweetheart tonight.""Besides, she says you’ve been super busy the past few days. I’m here to help take care of her. Aren’t I just the best?"She wrapped an arm around Alice’s waist, eliciting a playful grimace of protest."Is she taking care of you, or are you taking care

"Everyone, let’s give Professor Wilson a chance to speak. One question at a time, please," Gerald Ortiz said, stepping in to calm the crowd.Only then did the room quiet down.Joseph took a breath and began slowly, "The reason I’ve forgotten so much… is because of my Master. He used certain methods on me—methods that erased many of my memories."He touched his head, his expression clouded with uncertainty."Your master… Eugene Wilson?" someone asked.The moment that name was spoken, the expressions around the room shifted—curious, wary, nostalgic."You know my master?" Joseph’s eyes lit up with hope."We know of him," someone answered. "But we can’t say we truly understand him.""It’s because of your master that you ever had the chance to meet us.""He was a remarkable man, your legitimate teacher. Compared to him, we’re only half your mentors at best.""Years ago, he was dismissed by the higher-ups. After that, he became elusive—only showing up occasionally to check on you.""The las

Joseph was momentarily speechless. Wasn’t this just a gamble?And gambling was something he despised most in life. What if he did become a fool? What would happen to the young girl?At that thought, Joseph’s mind instinctively turned to Alice. Then, the image of Heidi surfaced as well, stirring a storm of emotions within his heart.“Kid, it’s not worth it. Your master must’ve had his reasons for doing this.”“A fifty-fifty chance isn’t worth the bet.”“Definitely not. If you become a fool, Elysia would lose a rising star in scientific research.”Everyone tried to dissuade him.“I agree,” Joseph sighed. “I can’t afford to gamble—because I can’t afford to lose.”“Then let things take their course. Follow your master’s instructions.”“Exactly. Lie low, wait for the right time.”“Weren’t we supposed to be eating? Why hasn’t anyone touched their chopsticks?”“Yeah, the food’s gone cold. Honestly, I’m starving over here.”At last, someone remembered the purpose of the gathering.“Yes, we sh